


Lost At Sea

by SnowWhiteKnight



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire & Related Fandoms, A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Cruise Ship, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Sandor is a dense potato, dense potato!Sandor, tsundere!Sandor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-19
Updated: 2018-01-24
Packaged: 2019-03-06 20:45:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,501
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13419309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SnowWhiteKnight/pseuds/SnowWhiteKnight
Summary: All aboard the luxury liner!





	1. Day 1 - Thursday

Dear diary,

Today is the first day of the long awaited cruise! Ten days at sea aboard a luxury cruise ship. I still can’t believe Mom and Dad offered to pay for it. Not just for me, but for all my brothers, my cousin, Arya and Brienne, too! Margaery and Jeyne will be picking me up soon. Myrcella, Brienne and Arya are heading out to pick up Hot Pie, Podrick and Gendry. Robb, Bran, Rickon, Jon and Ygritte are meeting us at the docks as well. Oh! I got all of us these matching travel journals, each one in our favorite color. Mine is yellow, of course. That would be you, dear diary. And they all have sturdy locks on them, though I’m sure Arya will be able to pick them open without difficulty. Oh well.

Margaery swears this trip will be legendary, as the potential for meeting a guy will be off the charts. There’s only one guy I’m particularly interested in, however, and his sister confirmed to me that he will be on board. Can you guess, diary? Joffrey Baratheon!! He’s so handsome and perfect, and only one and a half years older than me. I hope I can catch his eye. I’ve been trying for months, but he just sort of dismisses me in general. This cruise is the perfect time to get to know him better. I tried to find a swimsuit of black and gold, but the closest I could find was yellow with black. It’s not super sexy (Dad would kill me), but I do find it quite flattering. Oh! I hear a car approaching. Later, diary!

 

Dear diary,

Ok, calling you diary is getting tiresome already. From now on,  ~~you’re~~ your name shall be...Alys.

I’m on board the cruise ship. I already ran into Joffrey. Literally. I ran into him and dropped all my things. My suitcase just popped open and all my clothing went everywhere! I was mortified! Even worse, his bodyguard was with him!! Sandor “The Hound” Clegane. He  _ hates _ me!! He’s not that bad of a guy, but he’s always so angry and I have no idea why he dislikes me so much, though I do try to be friendly to him. He frightened me at first. He’s horribly scarred on one side of his face, which just makes him incredibly scary looking in general. He ups that scary factor by scowling and being mean. Sometimes, Alys… sometimes he’s nice, but in this weird, mean sort of way. I know, it doesn’t make sense, and just ends up confusing me so much.

Back to today: Sandor just glowered at me while I tried to pick everything up, though he did help. Joffrey helped a bit, too, but mostly he laughed at me. I suppose it was a bit funny, but not  _ that _ funny. :( Once everything was back in my bag, I bolted out of there. I’m soooooo glad I have a room to myself right now. Any of the other girls would know immediately that something was wrong. Sandor told me once that I have absolutely no talent for hiding my emotions. I hate that he’s right, but I can’t help it!! I can’t just--

Sorry, Alys, there was a knock at the door. I forgot what I was about to write before, but get this: Sandor brought me a small bag of things that I missed from earlier. He’s so rude. Just shoved the bag at me and stormed off. Gonna open it now.

OMG 

OMG OMG OMG

IT’S MY UNDIES! SANDOR HAD MY UNDIES!! I WILL DIE NOW, ALYS. I CAN JUST DIE.

**********

_ For fuck’s sake… _ Sandor thought, as Joffrey became distracted by some girls in skimpy clothing. The blond cunt leered at them, but it gave Sandor a chance to swipe the stolen clothing. Panties. Of course the little fucker had stolen her panties. At the time, he had thought it odd that Joffrey would help her. Now it made more sense. 

He hated his fucking job, thought it paid extremely well.  _ And you get to see the little bird whenever she flits around him. _ He had accepted the horrible truth months ago. He  _ liked _ her. Pretty little chirping bird, so fucking annoying with her sweet nature, her happy aura, and genuine kindness. She was everything he wasn’t. And he was everything she wasn’t looking for in a man. He knew he stood no chance with her.

He stuffed the clothing into the first plastic bag he could find.  He tried really hard to ignore the fact that she seemed to have a penchant for green lace and pink ribbons, and he couldn’t get the image of her in  _ just _ the panties out of his head.  _ Fuck. Going to need to jerk off after this. Ok, give her the bag, get straight back to my room, lock myself in for as long as necessary. Yeah, that’ll work. _


	2. Day 2 - Friday

Dear Alys,

Didn’t die from embarrassment. Can’t bear to look Sandor in the eye right now. I tried to thank him, but I was still so embarrassed. So was he, from the look of it. And from how he snarled at me. *sigh* I really wish I knew why he dislikes me so much. ~~I've never been rude to him, even gone out of my way to be nice! The few times he isn't snarling at me, he's actually kind of cool to be around. He makes me laugh, and I honestly feel safer with him than any other of Joffrey's guards. I'd even go as far to say that he's kind of cute, or he would be if he'd stop frowning so dang much! From what I actually know about him, I think we could actually be friends, if only he'd just loosen up a bit~~

*SIGH* what's the use? I'm going to go to the pool for a bit.

 

Dear Alys,

Happier news. We are far from land now, ocean as far as the eye can see! I’m so excited. Brienne is being hounded by Jaime Lannister of all people. It’s adorable. She’s been working for his brother and apparently caught Jaime’s eye. Seriously, I told her that she’d kill in that swimsuit, and with the way Jaime’s eyes bugged out at the pool earlier, it just proved me right!

 

Dear Alys,

I hate Margaery so much. Ok, no, I don’t. Margaery is great, but I can’t believe her sometimes! She shoved me into the pool on the recreation deck. Apparently, she has a crush on one of the crew members. Braun, or Brian, or something like that. Arya, Margaery and I were taking a walk around the deck, just exploring and making plans for later. This guy (maybe Bronx?) showed up and in a moment of panic, Margaery just shoved me out of the way. Right into the pool. I was so shocked, I didn’t react at all, which is really bad, since that meant I swallowed a whole lot of pool water. The only reason I didn’t drown was because Joffrey was hanging around, meaning Sandor was around. Arya told me that he jumped in and pulled me out of the water, then gave me mouth to mouth until I coughed it all up. The first thing I remembered after falling into the water was seeing Sandor’s eyes. I’ve _never_ been so glad to see someone!! I may have nearly choked him, I hugged him so hard. Also, I never noticed how beautiful his eyes are before. Silver-grey with black flecks, almost like Arya’s and Father’s, with that same liquid steel quality, but so much nicer. He usually looks at the floor, and not AT me, but this time... but he was so concerned, so worried...  He carried me back to my room and stayed with me until the onboard maester came to see me. I don’t know why he’s being so nice, but I will have to thank him somehow. But in a way that he will accept it, unlike that last time… He’s so weird sometimes.

The second worst part of it all, Joffrey wandered off somewhere during my blackout. ;_; I can’t believe it! I could have died and he went for a smoothie. A SMOOTHIE. I always thought he was a gentleman. I thought he liked me! Arya found him at the poolside concession stand, which is how I know he got a smoothie, and managed to accidentally on purpose push him into the fruit bin of the concession stand. I have the best little sister.

Now, I’m resting in bed. Margaery’s been by and apologized profusely. Sandor came back and brought me some supper, grilled fish and macaroni. He said since I’m now a bird at sea, I should eat like one. The wretch. :) I told him I’m not a pelican. He said if anyone was a pelican, it was him, since those birds are “ugly fuckers” (they’re not, btw, I love pelicans, especially brown pelicans, and I will make him rue the day he called them ugly. RUE!!!!) and that I was more of a storm-petrel, which I will have to look up later since it sounds completely awesome, but the entire thing made me laugh. He gave me this sort of half-grimace, half-smile and then left.

Alys...is it weird that I wish he had stayed a bit longer? I mean, like I said before, I never disliked him, but I always thought he hated me so I didn’t want to be around him that much. But...right now, he’s not glaring at me, he’s not growling at me, he’s not telling me to “shut my pretty mouth”. Huh...actually, now that I think about it, he calls me pretty a lot. Do you think he means it? Or maybe it’s just something he says, like “For f**k’s sake”. He says that quite a lot, though usually under his breath when he thinks no one can hear him. I wish he was here, Alys. When he carried me back to my room, I was so cold, and he was so warm and comfortable. I bet he gives really good hugs, if he’d let himself, and I really could use a hug right now. :(

**********

Sandor lay in bed, his arm thrown over his eyes. He hadn’t quite gotten over the fear that had coursed through his veins when he saw that the little bird wasn’t resurfacing from being pushed into the pool. He had moved before he had thought about it, been in the water before he realized his own intention. She had only been in the water a few seconds, but she looked paler than normal when he pulled her out of the water. Her lithe body was limp in his arms and all he could think of was to plead with the gods to not take her from him so soon. She was so fragile and delicate in his arms.

His other hand came up to touch his mouth, trace the area that had touched her skin. _It wasn’t a kiss,_ he told himself, but it was, in a way. The kiss of life, the junior maester had called it. Fat little fuck had the same sparkle in his eyes as Sansa. The maester in training had tended to Sandor as Maester Luwin tended to Sansa. _That fat junior maester is every bit the romantic the little bird is._ Sandor had recognized it immediately and it annoyed the shit out of him. The fat idiot had gone on and on about how heroic Sandor had been. He wanted to argue with the little shit, but when the fat fuck mentioned that Ms. Stark must be ever so grateful, he had paused.

He felt bad that the first thing that came to mind was that maybe she wouldn’t say no to a date if he asked her now. He felt even worse when, in his heart, he had really thought that maybe she’d let him fuck her, as a thank-you-for-saving-my-life. _That’s a low point, even for you, you buggering fool._

He had felt guilty for having such vulgar thoughts about someone like her. Not the fucking her part. He thought about that a lot. Could have written volumes upon volumes of books full of fantasies, in fact. No, it was the “sex in exchange for her life” part that made him feel bad enough to go see her again and bring her food. She looked weak, but in high spirits, considering everything. She said Maester Luwin had ordered bed rest for the next day, but that she would be fine in no time at all. She gave him a brilliant smile and laughed at a not so brilliant joke from him. She may have glared at him when he called pelicans ugly fuckers, but as to why, he had no idea. She had laughed again soon after, so he considered it a fluke emotion.

_Tomorrow will be better,_ he thought as he drifted off to sleep. _She’s alive. That’s all that matters._


	3. Day 3 - Saturday

Dear Alys,

I’m feeling  ~~alot~~ a lot better today, though I wasn’t allowed to leave my room until Maester Luwin came by to check on me. Sandor was nice again and brought me breakfast. He made a joke about me being a cannibal, since part of the breakfast was eggs, but I told him that would just make me a predator like a falcon or a hawk. Or that the eggs could just as easily been reptile instead of avian. He retorted that the two are somewhat related, so my argument was null and void. He left for a little bit, but came back about an hour later. Margaery and the girls checked in on me during that time. I told them I’d join them as soon as I could.

Sandor kept me company as I waited for the maester. I asked him if Joffrey would mind. He sneered (though not at me, Alys! This is a first) that Joffrey was busy chasing down a woman he considered to be easy prey, but Sandor said he had found out the woman in question was a Greyjoy and fiercer than any Ironborn man. Oh, and he said the woman, Asha, would likely cream Joffrey for making any moves, but Joffrey had dismissed him for the day, choosing to have his other bodyguard with him instead, Meryn Trant. He immediately looked chagrined. And he apologized. He never apologizes unless it’s really serious!! Alys, I was honestly scared. No joke. Then I realized why he was apologizing. 

It was because he knew I was pursuing Joffrey, and he forgot himself for a moment. How long has he been protecting me from Joffrey’s ugly side? Only letting me see the shining prince that Joffrey shows the rest of the world? In related questions, how did I never see it for myself? I did see it, but I dismissed it. The way he talks down to just about  _ everybody, _ the way he’s constantly suggesting ways I can improve myself, or the most annoying one, how he spends so much at restaurants, but never tips! Not even a single copper!! I mean,  _ who does that?! _ So many clues, and I was blinded to his flaws. Some by choice, others because it was hidden from me. I only wish Sandor had not shielded me from such a view. I spent so much time obsessing over this guy, thinking he was so great and wonderful, and it turns out he’s no better than his father, the notorious, no, the  _ infamous _ woman-chasing mayor of our fine town. I know, Alys, he’s my dad’s best friend, but the man has been caught in more scandals than Arya and Rickon had gotten into trouble at home.  _ Combined. _ His wife divorced him years ago, but he still had a string of girlfriends that he was constantly cheating on. I mean, what the heck!! His only redeeming qualities are that he’s loyal to his friends, he’s good in a crisis, and he’s a great mayor in general. He’s just horrible as a person. :/

Enough about that. The point of all of this: I’m  _ not _ pursuing Joffrey anymore. I intended to get to know him better, to know the REAL him, and it only took a day to accomplish this. Less than 24 hours! He’s a jerk. A complete and utter jerk. I feel like such an idiot for not seeing it for so long. I told Sandor as much, and that he shouldn’t apologize because of Joffrey. If anything, he should apologize for not letting me see the real Joffrey sooner. He sort of stared at me for a while, and I thought maybe I went too far, but then he ducked his head, and started laughing into his hand. The maester came by right after that, and cleared me to leave the room. Sandor left so that I could change.

I had a hard time choosing what to wear. I put on my swimsuit, but then what to put over it? I didn’t want to walk around in  _ just _ my swimsuit. That’s just a bad idea. I don’t mean this in a bragging way, but I tend to attract attention in general. It gets worse when I’m in a revealing swimsuit. I mean, my new one isn’t particularly revealing, but I wouldn’t bet money against  _ not _ getting stares and catcalls. So annoying. I guess I took a while, because Sandor was banging on the door before I knew it, and yelling at me to hurry up. I opened the door to explain the situation, but he physically recoiled when he saw me. That was a first. Most guys just stare. Or leer. And then make crude suggestions. He turned away from me, Alys!! I’m so confused. First, I thought he disliked me, then I think maybe we could be friends, but now he can’t even stand to look at me, so maybe he was just feeling bad for me since I nearly died and now that I’m better, he’s fine with disliking me again? 

After that, he told me in a very low voice that if I let him back in, he’d pick out something for me so we can get the hell out of there. I did, but can I tell you something Alys? I felt really sad. It was so weird. I usually feel annoyed or creeped out by the attention I get, so you’d think having a guy not do that would be refreshing. It always is when it happens with gay guys like Loras and Willas, but this time, all I felt was disappointment. I can’t even explain why. He quickly picked out my favorite, a blue sleeveless zip-up jersey hooded jacket, and a dark grey wrap skirt. Just as quickly, I put them on and we left. He said he had some stuff he needed to take care of, but then asked if I’d like to have dinner with him later. I was shocked. He also seemed shocked by his question, like he hadn’t meant to ask.

Alys. I said yes. I don’t know why. I also don’t know why my heart was hammering so much inside my chest. I mean, he  _ hates _ me!  _ Why would I be attracted to someone who hates me? _ Wait, I mean... I didn’t mean that. I’m not attracted to him. No. No way. I couldn’t. I’m not so much of a glutton for punishment that I would be attracted to someone who I have no chance with. Right??? Ugh, I’m getting a headache. I’m supposed to meet him at the entrance to the dining hall. 

The rest of the afternoon passed in a blur. I hung out with Myrcella and Robb at the pool. Well, more like I was the reason Myrcella was able to hang around Robb. *sigh* After a while, they left. The mood was definitely getting  _ cozy, _ if you know what I mean, Alys. Bow chika bow bow! :D Also, gross. My brother is totally getting laid. No one has seen neither him nor Myrcella for the past few hours.

I attempted to join Jon and Ygritte next, but Ygritte was practically sucking Jon’s face off and I abandoned them for Bran and his boyfriend Jojen. No luck there. They were being too darn cute and huggy. It was the kind of cuteness that depresses me, since it reminds me I don’t have a special someone. I’m usually ok with being single, but not at times like that.

I swam with Rickon and Shireen for a while, though they were getting in the mood, too. I hung out with Arya and Brienne after that, but then Jaime showed up. And Podrick and Gendry. Brienne, the coward, ran away. Jaime followed. Arya was annoyed with both Podrick and Gendry. From what I can tell, she’s been dating them both casually, and they’re wanting her to choose between the two of them. I could have told them it was useless, but I somehow doubt either would have been swayed. By the end of it, I was pretty annoyed with them, too, and I sincerely hoped she’d choose to dump them both. I mean, COME ON. Take a hint, guys. (we were  _ trying _ to have some sister time.)

Oh, it’s almost time for my  ~~date~~ dinner with Sandor. It’s not a date. We’d have to be attracted to each other for that. And I’m not. Attracted to him, I mean. Definitely not. One hundred percent not. One THOUSAND percent. Even if he has gorgeous eyes. And is super strong. And has incredible shoulders. Nice torso, too, now that I think about it. And nice legs. All of him, really. He puts a lot of work into his body, since he has to be able to protect Joffrey, son of the mayor and grandson to the business king of our city. And his butt, very nice. Best part of him, if I  _ had _ to pick one part. I kind of want to give it a squeeze. Not that it’s all about physical appearances. Though he is actually kind of handsome when he’s not being so mean and angry all the time. Let’s see...non-physical attractive things about Sandor… Well, he’s nice to me even when he’s being gruff. Considerate, even, but in a rude sort of way? Myrcella is really into anime and manga. There was a term she used once that describes Sandor, but I forget the word. I do remember her description of it though. Basically, “It’s not like I like you, stupid!” Ha ha! That sort of fits him, except for the implied “I like you” part, since he dislikes me. What else? Oh, he makes sure I stay safe. He was the one who rescued me, after all, but I mean more like the little things. In that past, he’ll walk between me and the street. He’s scared off the annoying guys that try to hit on me when I was hanging around Joffrey and Joffrey had wandered off. He’s driven me home on several occasions when it’s been late and the trains aren’t running anymore. See? This is what I mean when I say he’s not such a bad guy. :)

Re-reading what I just wrote… Alys...do I...do I  _ like _ Sandor? As in LIKE like?!?! And more importantly, what should I wear to dinner???? 

**********

Sandor was sitting on his bed, his elbows on his knees and his face in his hands.  _ What the hell have I gotten myself into?! Why did I ask her out?? Why did she say yes?! _ He had heard the words tumbling out of his mouth before he could even think to stop talking. His head had been scrambled, clearly. By her and that damn swimsuit. 

It wasn’t even that provocative. He had passed by the pool area yesterday, seen much more revealing suits on other women and been unaffected. Hell, one woman was wearing little more than string and a few patches of cloth, and he had felt only the barest of stirrings. He was red-blooded male, after all, though he had had to shove thoughts of Sansa wearing something similar to the back of his mind, else he’d have to return to his room yet again after just having left it. 

He had watched her from a distance after he had jerked off in his room. She had spent time with each of her siblings and friends, laughing and having fun with them. They were relaxed and easygoing, even when things got a bit weird and way too much for public displays of affection. Why couldn’t he just be around her like that? The relaxed and easygoing part, not the PDA part, instead of awkward, defensive, and being a general asshole. 

Joffrey had been a (somewhat) welcoming distraction, though the need to shove him overboard was growing. He had been shot down by the Greyjoy girl, nearly pummelled by her from what he heard, and was on to new prey. A wildling named Osha. Sandor didn’t even try to tell him it was useless.

Now, back in his room, the time was ticking down to when he was supposed to meet with her. Throwing his worries from his mind for the moment, he got up and started getting ready. Half an hour later, he was staring at his reflection. Black shirt with long sleeves to hide his tattoos, tucked into his jeans and his favorite belt. His combat boots were well worn, but extremely comfortable. He took his jacket with him under his arm. The nights at sea got a bit chilly for his tastes, even if he was comfortable right now.

He was early for dinner by twenty minutes, but she was even earlier. He stopped and stared at her in awe. She hadn’t noticed him yet. She was wearing a deep green sundress, with a black lace shawl over her shoulders. Her hair was braided back, though there were a few loose strands that refused to be tamed. She was beautiful.

He steeled himself and walked up to her. She gave him a shy smile as he approached. “You’re early,” he said, and immediately wanted to kick himself.  _ That’s not how you greet someone, idiot. _

She laughed. “So are you!”

He looked over at the dining hall. The doors wouldn’t open until seven, and there was nowhere to really sit in this vicinity. “Want to walk a bit? Kill some time?” She nodded and took his arm before he could say anything. They walked in a comfortable silence, though Sansa seemed to be enjoying the sea breeze. After fifteen minutes, they turned around and walked back.

The dinner was not what he expected. Not that he expected anything good, in fact, he had expected everything to go horribly wrong, but he got a text from Trant saying that Joffrey was confined to his room for the remainder of the trip because of a broken bone and orders from the captain. Apparently, he had made a move on the Osha girl, and she had shoved him into the railing hard enough to send him over it and splat onto the deck below. He had survived, unfortunately. On the other hand, Cersei couldn’t do anything about it, because the ship had caught Joffrey trying to assault the girl on video. It had already been forwarded to the proper authorities and Joffrey was currently under house arrest as well as having a broken leg.  _ Good riddance. _

“Seems Joff’s been hurt,” he told Sansa, watching her expression carefully. She seemed curious, but no more so than any other person as caring as her.

“Is he going to be ok?” she asked.

“In a few months. Fell and broke his leg.”

“What? How?”

“You really want to know?”

She thought about it. “Would it make some juicy gossip?”

“Uh...I don’t know? Maybe?”

“Tell me, please?” She gave him the sweetest smile, he couldn’t really  _ not _ tell her.

“He tried to...uh, hit on a woman who took offense. A wildling woman. She threw him off the side of the deck and he landed on his feet. Unfortunately, he didn’t land  _ well _ and...yeah, broke his leg.”

“Dang...she’s fierce. I don’t think I could do something like that. Is she ok? I mean...I assume Joffrey made advances that were, um,  _ unwelcome _ and that’s why she threw him off the deck, so… is she?”

“Yeah, as far as I know.”

“Good,” she said, smiling up at him. “I’m glad.”

Sandor nodded. If Sansa was happy, he was happy.


	4. Day 4 - Sunday

Dear Alys,

I _cannot_ stop smiling. My date with Sandor went so well. I just got back and it is TECHNICALLY a new day, meaning we had a date that lasted about six hours. Dinner was just fantastic, the quality is what you’d expect from such a nice cruise line, and the conversation… OH! He had me laughing and just feeling so _free._ I have to admit, I sometimes feel like I have to guard myself around everyone, but with him… Oh, Alys, I’m not even going to try and deny it. I like him. A lot. After dinner, we walked around a bit, talked some more… He asked about Lady. We talked about the different dog parks in the city. He takes his own dog to the one over in the main park, which is a bit far for my tastes, but we agreed that we could sometimes meet up for a puppy playdate.

We walked and talked, talked and walked. I just… I learned so much more about him than I ever thought was possible. We even went to one of the decks that was completely deserted, sat in the plastic chairs and talked some more. When I got cold, I made a bold move, one I've never tried with anyone else, but with Sandor, it just seemed _right._ I made him move over in his chair and cuddled next to him. He used his jacket as a blanket for us. It was just so… NICE. Can I use that word for him? I mean, he's always been nice in that mean way, but tonight he was just nice nice and it was… nice!! Hahahaha!

Alys… I wanted to kiss him. And I did!!! On the cheek. But it was _super_ close to his mouth! And I totally touched his chest. Two palms, on his big, awesome muscles… *_* ~~And...I think...but I’m not sure...I think I gave him an erection! He was hunched over a little oddly, and kept his hands over his general crotch area. I felt a little...proud. Is that bad? Or is it worse that I wanted to ask him to come into my room and maybe fool around a little~~ ~~.~~ Oh gods...have I become a ~~wonton~~ wanton woman, Alys? ~~Though, if it’s with Sandor… I suppose I don’t mi~~ nd Pray for me, dear, fictitious Alys.

**********

 _Fuck fuck fuck!!!_ Sandor slammed the door of his room shut and leaned heavily against it. His brain felt scrambled, overloaded, from his dinner with Sansa. It had gone… _well._ Too well. He wished he hadn't discovered how much they had in common. It gave him hope. _HOPE_ for fuck's sake! It was the last thing he needed! And then after… with the cuddling, the touching… the kiss… Oh, fuck, that kiss! It wasn't even a real kiss, just her lips touching his cheek… his bad cheek, but it had been so close to his mouth, _almost_ a real kiss. Not to mention there was the way she had looked at him, like she _wanted_ him. Wanted him to take her right there on the lido deck. He almost had, or at least, had almost made out with her, but he had heard giggles coming from some of the other people on the cruise, as well as having his cock stand at full attention. Sansa hadn't noticed any of that, thank fuck, but he had gotten her out of there. It was a dangerous game he was playing, but if he got burned, it was a small consolation that it was by her.


	5. Day 5 - Monday

Sandor come by EARLY this morning, Alys. I was still asleep… dreaming… ~~of him in nothing but~~ of puppies and kittens. So fluffy. Innocent. What what I saying. Oh right, Sandor wants to have dinner with me again, and lunch, and maybe try some of the activities they have on this cruise. Margaery came by right after, and asked me if his THING is as big as everyone suspects. I was sooooo mortified, Alys. ~~And I felt horrible because I had wondered that myself!~~ I told her we were just friends, to which she countered that friends don’t sleep over in each other’s rooms and have a walk of shame, to which _I_ countered that he didn’t sleep over, and therefore couldn’t have a walk of shame. I’m not sure she believed me, but it was the truth! ~~But… I kind of wish he had slept over. Just a little bit…~~

Afternoon

Oh, Alys… have I been blind this entire time? Did the golden boy Joffrey blind me so much that I couldn't see what was right in front of me? Sandor is just… he's the best guy I've ever met! You will not believe this, but brace yourself. He played shuffleboard. Ok, that sounds really not amazing, but hear me out! So, Robb was being Mr. Big for Myrcella, totally trying to impress her. I mean, he was making an ass of himself, talking REAL big about how he was the best sportsman ever and could beat anyone in any game. Now, he's really good at sports, but the best ever? I think not. Ygritte is way better than him at a lot of sports, but she's "just a girl" so she apparently doesn't count. RUDE. Myrcella was getting annoyed, but Robb didn't notice. I did, and I mentioned it to Sandor, about how my brother could stand to be taken down a peg or two, and do you know what he did? He challenged Robb! Just because I said something! He denied it, of course, but I know it was for me. That TOTALLY was not my intention when I said something to him, but it was so sweet! Robb got to pick the game, and he went with SHUFFLEBOARD. I mean… what the heck?!?! I think it's because he figured there's no way anyone would be good at it. The rules were… forgettable, to be honest, but there was a staff member who kept track of their scores and at the end of it, Sandor won! Robb was pissed! Myrcella laughed at him, but then made it up to him by dragging him off and practically jumping him before they were out of our sight. He's so getting laid again! :D Also, gross. xP 

Though… that brings me back to Sandor. I, um… I _may_ have jumped him. Just a little bit. But not like Myrcella and Robb. More like, I jumped into his arms, my own arms wrapping around his neck and… I kissed him. Right on the mouth. Yep. That happened. I WASN'T THINKING!!!! I just… jumped on him (he caught me, by the way, EASILY), and I kissed him. RIGHT ON THE MOUTH. O_o!!!! He sort of… uh… I think I broke him a little. He made this, well, kind of a squeak noise, and then went really quiet. Then he left. And I haven't seen him since!! That was HOURS AGO!!! Alys, I don't know what to do! Is it bad?? Did I misjudge the situation?? I've just… I haven't stopped thinking about him and kissing him ~~and doing… other things…~~ I don't know what to do. Margaery says that Bronn (finally learned his name) can find out where Sandor's cabin is, and even get me a key so I don't have to worry about him not opening the door to me, but… ~~what if he doesn't like me the way I've realized I like him?~~ I will not be deterred! **_And I will find out what went wrong!! ~~  
~~_**

**********

Sandor lay on his bed, face pushed down into the pillow and his blanket covering him from head to mid-calf. Maybe, if he was lucky, he'd suffocate and not have to worry about the fact that not only had Sansa fucking Stark kissed him _(HIM!!!)_ but that he had run away like the coward he was. The gasp of the crowd around them had reminded him of what he was, a lowlife hired to be bodyguard to a modern day prince, and she was practically a princess out of a fairytale. He could still feel the warmth of her lips on his, the way her body felt pressed up against his. He groaned, wanting to kick himself for being such a colossal tool. _You don't get kissed by SANSA STARK and run from her, idiot!!!_

A gentle knock at the door brought him to attention. "Go away and let me die in misery of what a fucking idiot I am!" he yelled.

 _"Sandor? It's Sansa… please let me in?"_ came a lyrical voice through the door.

"Fuck…" he muttered.

_"Sandor?"_

He buried his head under his pillow, part of him wanting her to just go away and leave him alone, and the other part screaming at him to get up, let her in and kiss the stuffing out of her. He didn't hear the key in the door, or the lock being disengaged, or the door opening and then closing again, but he did feel the weight of the girl he couldn't stop thinking of on his back, her arms going around him as best they could so that she was hugging him. She pulled the blanket down to his shoulders.

"Sandor, please, talk to me? What did I do wrong? Is it the kiss? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make things awkward. I just… I wasn't thinking and I just _did_ it," she said softly. He could feel her breath through his shirt, hot on his shoulder. Her check was pressed to his spine and her body… He couldn't stop the reaction he had to her, especially since he was thinking about the kiss again. It was becoming painful, since he was lying face down, but he didn't want to move either and possibly cause her to get off of him.

"No, you didn't… you didn't do anything wrong," he mumbled. "I did. All I've been thinking about is kissing you and when it finally happens… I ran."

"You have? Been thinking about kissing me?" she asked, nuzzling his back a little.

"Yeah… among other things."

"So… like… hugging?" He heard the laughter in her voice. She was teasing him.

"Yeah," he said with a chuckle. "Hugging."

"What about… dancing?" She nipped at the back of his neck. "And holding hands?"

"Oddly enough, yeah, those things. And making you smile, making you laugh."

"And what about…" She got a little closer to his ear. "What about making love to me?" she whispered. He could feel her heart pounding against his back.

His face got hot. "Yeah… I think about that. A lot."

"I think about all those things too, with you. I always thought you hated me though."

"How could I ever hate you…" he mumbled. "You're too good for this wretched world."

"I could say the same about you," she said, sliding off his back and onto the bed, laying close to him.

"Delusional little bird," but he was smiling at her.

"I mean it. You're no saint, but… this world would be worse off without you in it." She wiggled around, getting under the blanket with him and cuddling up against him. He let her move and position him like a doll until she was comfortable. He was on his back now, his arm under her head, and her hand on his chest. If she looked down, she would see the very obvious tent in the blanket, but she kept her eyes on his face. _"I_ would be worse off without knowing you. And probably dead since you're the one who saved my life. Not just on this cruise, but remember when Joff wanted to go to that club but it was in the bad part of town?"

"Yeah, and those assholes wouldn't leave you alone. Doubt that your _life_ was in danger, but…" He sighed. "You're a fucking trouble magnet," he said, remembering how they had tried to drag her off, but he had clobbered each and every one of them to protect her. Joffrey hadn't even noticed she had been in trouble.

She giggled. "Yeah, well, you negate it for me. That alone means you should be with me. As friends," she kissed his nose, "maybe even as…" she kissed his cheek, "as my… my boyfriend." Her voice was barely audible, but she was blushing so much, her face practically matched her hair.

"Nothing about me is boyish," he growled, turned so that he was on his side, facing her, and pulled her into a close embrace. He was nervous, since his now fully erect cock was pressing against her, but she didn't seem fazed by it.

"No," she whispered, her voice a bit low and husky. "I suppose not. But 'manfriend' sounds weird. So… whatever you want to be called, I just… I want you to be mine. Is that… is that something you want as well?"

"That would be an understatement," he said, kissing her softly. He wanted to go faster, harder, but there was time for that. Later. For now, he was content to be in bed with her, and have her respond to his kisses. Slowly, she became bolder in her responses.

"Can I stay in your room for the remainder of the trip?" she asked. He raised an eyebrow at her. "I'll make it worth your while…" she said, smiling in her innocent yet seductive way. He grinned. _Like she even really needed to ask._


	6. Epilogue - Day 9, Friday

"Hey, have you seen that Stark girl lately? The redhead one, not the brunette one."

"No. Why?"

"Damn... Wanted to ask her to go dancing tonight."

"Where's that big scary guy? The one who was guarding the douchebag? Man, I was sooooo glad when I heard he was out of commission for the rest of the cruise…"

"No idea. Did you try the bar? Heard he likes to drink."

"Oh, I don't want to _find_ him. I just want to know where to avoid."

"Shit, did you see?? That gorgeous girl was practically grinding on the monster guy!!!"

"She wasn't _grinding,_ idiot. She was just sitting on his lap. It was kinda cute actually. Sort of like Beauty and the Beast."

**********

It was the last full day of the cruise. Tomorrow morning, they would be pulling into port. Arya found Sansa alone at the pool, sunning herself. "So I've heard a lot of stuff about you," she said, plopping down to sit next to her sister.

"Oh?" Sansa asked, unfazed by Arya's sudden appearance.

"Yeah. Like you're letting the Hound impregnate you with his demon spawn."

"You just don't like him because he beat you in that swimming race yesterday."

"He cheated! He's way too tall to be racing against someone of my stature. And that's beside the point. Are you, or are you not, fucking the Hound?"

"Why do you care?"

Arya noticed that Sansa blushed a bit and narrowed her eyes. "Because it's my job to keep you safe. Stop dodging the question."

Sansa sighed and took off her sunglasses to look Arya straight in the eyes. "No, we are not…" Her voice dropped to a whisper. _"Fucking."_

"Oh, thank the gods--"

"Yet." Sansa grinned as Arya's face became one of utter horror. "Sandor wants to wait a bit. It's rather sweet of him. He wants me to be absolutely certain that I want him like that, which I am, but--"

_"Ew!"_

Sansa giggled and put her sunglasses back on. "You were the one who asked, missy. Anyway, we _are_ dating now. So get used to it. And, we may not be having intercourse, but we've still been fooling around. He's really good with his--"

Arya stuck her fingers in her ears. "I'm not listening!!! Lalalalalalalala!" Sansa laughed as Arya got up and walked away.

"What's her problem?" Sandor asked, bringing Sansa the drink she asked for.

"She thinks I'm insane for being interested in you." She thanked him for the drink with a kiss.

"That makes two of us." He sat down in the chair next to her.

"Jerk. Now I'm only going to let you see part of me naked instead of all of me."

"... I'll be good."

Sansa laughed and joined him in his lounge chair. They could hear the exaggerated gagging sounds from Arya behind them as they started to make out.


End file.
